Bubble Buddy

If you were looking for the article about the season 8 episode, then see Bubble Buddy Returns.

Characters

Synopsis

As every day is a holiday for SpongeBob, he wakes up wearing a Viking costume and proclaims it to be Leif Ericson Day. He then goes outside to celebrate with his friends, but finds notes at the houses of Patrick, Sandy and Squidward notifying that they cannot, or will not, play with him. SpongeBob decides to, literally, make a new friend, and after several failed attempts, he blows a bubble figure whom he names Bubble Buddy.

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"This...is...great!"

The two go to the Krusty Krab, where SpongeBob orders everything on the menu for Bubble Buddy. However, SpongeBob makes several specifications on Bubble Buddy's behalf that Squidward is forced to bend over backward to accommodate. After the meal, Bubble Buddy pays with "bubble-money," which quickly pops and infuriates Squidward and Mr. Krabs.

SpongeBob and Bubble Buddy next go to the Goo Lagoon, where they continue to cause trouble with their antics: holding up the restroom, causing misunderstandings, and leaving one fish to face high tide. Eventually, the beach-goers become fed up and begin to riot, even tipping over the lifeguard tower. Squidward steps in and blames SpongeBob and the bubble he has created, causing the mob to direct their efforts towards popping Bubble Buddy. They surround SpongeBob and Bubble Buddy, brandishing sewing needles and chanting their intent to pop the bubble. SpongeBob tries to escape by inflating Bubble Buddy, but he fails to fly away from the crowd's grasp. SpongeBob implores them to realize that Bubble Buddy is his special friend, prompting the crowd to remember similar friends of their own.

Unfortunately, this is not enough to change their minds. As the crowd knocks SpongeBob out of the way, Squidward brings down his needle. All of a sudden, Bubble Buddy comes to life and catches Squidward's arm before the needle reaches him, much to the shock of everyone except SpongeBob. Bubble Buddy informs SpongeBob that "things are getting a little weird around here," and departs in a bubble taxi, floating into the sky and wishing SpongeBob a Happy Leif Erikson Day. The majority of the crowd, satisfied, leaves to go on with their lives. SpongeBob happily cries for his friend blowing up so fast before leaving in a flurry of bubbles. All but one of them pop, and Squidward, left behind in a daze, awkwardly greets it.

Production

Music

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Release

This episode is available on Lost at Sea, Complete 2nd Season, and First 100 Episodes DVDs.

Reception

Trivia

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The music heard during the episode's title card and opening credits was later used as theme music for the "Nicktoons Summer Beachhouse," which ran during the summers of 2002 and 2003.
Leif Erikson Day is actually a real holiday (October 9).
There is a sequel to this episode called "Bubble Buddy Returns," although Bubble Buddy only appears briefly in that episode.
Bubble Buddy does not appear again for 11 years in an episode until "Bubble Buddy Returns" in 2011.
Both this episode and its sequel end the same way: Bubble Buddy gets inside a vehicle that floats away - a taxi in this episode, and a plane in Bubble Buddy Returns.
Unlike other episodes, this episode shows that Squidward can actually make Krabby Patties correctly rather than burning them or making disgusting versions of them.
- Squidward will soon continue to make great Krabby Patties in the later episodes "Breath of Fresh Squidward," "The Good Krabby Name," and "Super Evil Aquatic Villain Team Up is Go!"
The troubles SpongeBob and Bubble Buddy caused were:
- Giving Mr. Krabs "bubble money."
- Making Squidward "provide excellent service."
- Having Scooter die from the causes of a high tide.
- Keeping the citizens waiting for 2 hours for Bubble Buddy to finish using the Port-O-Head.
- Making Pearl cry because he washed the dirty mark from her flipper (while shaking hands) by Grubby Grouper.
- Having the Bikini Bottomites think their butts were 'fat' (bubble butt).
During all of the scenes when SpongeBob is at Goo Lagoon, SpongeBob's socks are completely white instead of his usual white socks with red and blue lines on them.
It is unknown why Scooter still appears after he died in this episode.

Cultural references

The line "He delivered a plague onto our houses" references a scene in Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet where Mercutio says "I am hurt, a plague on both your houses!"
When SpongeBob is looking at the menu for the Krusty Krab, one of the foods mentioned is the "Quarter Ouncer Double Pounder." This may be a parody of McDonald's burger the Double Quarter Pounder.

Errors

The captions cut off too early at several points in the episode, and sometimes only stay on for a split-second before disappearing; the same goes for its sister episode, "Big Pink Loser."
In this episode, Chuck Klein's name was spelled wrong in the opening credits with the I and E reversed (Chuck Klien).
In Indonesia, Sandy's note is narrated by SpongeBob, instead of Sandy herself.
During the scene with the menu, the prices are gone.
In this episode, Mr. Krabs is seen with white chest hair, but in other episodes, he has black chest hair and sometimes no chest hair.
When Squidward gives Bubble Buddy a Krabby Patty, there is no cheese inside it. When SpongeBob is about to look in the Krabby Patty, there is cheese inside it.
After Squidward is done with every way "Bubble Buddy" prefers his patties, Squidward says that the bun on the Krabby Patties has no crust, there is clearly crust on the buns.
- However, Bubble Buddy could've "changed his mind."
Bubble Buddy goes to the bathroom, but he's with SpongeBob in the scene where he says "Shake that bubble butt!," and then he's back in the bathroom.
When Bubble Buddy was in the bathroom, hundreds of fish were in line waiting. But when SpongeBob and Bubble Buddy leave, only about ten fish are in line.
- The fish could possibly have left offscreen.
When Francis says that SpongeBob kept them waiting for a bubble, there is a black whale in the line. But when Larry says that he called him fat, the whale is next to Larry.
Evelyn has sunglasses that repeatedly disappear and reappear throughout the episode.

References